The Hilt of Arkelyrion

The Story So Far...

25

DEC/14

It is the Seventh Age of Kaelleria, and the five-thousandth year thereof.

The Sixth Age was one of chaos and havoc, of horrors and brutality. It marked the greatest waning of the powers of light, as Orcus had weakened and banished the gods of man. Only the evilest of mankind rose to power, augmented by the influence of Orcus, the Great Demon Lord, who reigned supreme and dominated the Pantheon. Orc-kind had their run of Kaelleria, enslaving and slaughtering humans. Human culture and society was almost nonexistent, with trade impossible, and outposts remaining only in the remotest locales. As many humans were enslaved or servants to the orcs; and even enslaved to the goblins - for it was the age of the great Goblin Kings, as well. On The dwarves were hidden deep within the Earth, avoiding the torments of the surface; but they too were cornered, by the Duergar and Drow below. The Elves had woven their magic to protect and hide The Sylvan Empire Landwöellen from basest of Orcus’ minion, though they were continually assaulted by Forgotten Beasts and Abominations who roamed the land bringing slaughter, at the beckoning of the Great Demon Lord.

Only Oghma, the World Scroll, god of Knowledge, Patience, and Time, remained of the pantheon man, whom Orcus could never destroy. For it is only Oghma’s marking of the passage of history that maintains Kaelleria. And it was Oghma who noted a crack in Orcus’ might, that might be exploited to end his reign. And Oghma, though not inclined toward either the light or darkness, sought balance. Oghma, though captive, was able to bless the birth of a manborn child - a daughter born of slaves, known as Askeahra - with an essence of her avatar; and Askeahra, empowered with sight beyond sight escaped captivity and quested through the lands, though chased by agents of the Dark Lord. And Askeahra brought knowledge of possibilities to come to the few remaining communities of man, and taught others to spread the word of hope; and when ready she sought out the hidden strongholds of the Dragons, and was heeded by them - for she displayed the blessing of Oghma: all who heard knew when she spoke, she spoke true, and she could never lie. Thus she arranged a secret council between the Eternal Wyrms, Bahamut and Tiamat — the god and goddess from whose bodies all the Dragons of Kaelleria were spawned. Thus was forged Chomato-Metallic Pact, an unheard of alliance between Bahamut and Tiamat. Tiamat’s influence had severely waned with the rise of Orcus; she was jealous and quick to seek revenge and give this upstart god comeuppance. Their combined power brought upon the death in this world and banishment of Orcus to the Nine Hells. To this day, Orcus schemes and conspires to regain his lost dominance. Bahamut and Tiamat both brought power to man, enabling the diaspora — many in hiding, holed up, or enslaved — bring down and push back again the chaos of the Orc Hordes and the Cruel and Vicious bureaucracy of the Goblin Kings. This power fed the ambition of man and enabled his resurgence.

So ended the Sixth Age and began the Seventh.

To this day, Bahamut and Tiamat remain the chief gods of light and darkness Kaelleria, and though they have returned to sleep, as is the wont of the Eternal Wyrms, their dreams bring power to both humans and dragonkind, alike. It is believed that this moment, when mankind entered their dreams, that this intermingling gave rise to the newest race to walk Kaelleria and view and shape it in its image: the Dragonborn.

With the Seventh Age, borders slowly became more porous, as the Dwarves again opened their great tunnels to the surface, seeking trade in the great gems and metal artifacts they’d forged; and the Elves let down many of their magical defenses, knowing they must work with mankind, whose resurgence would need guidance. Indeed it was with the guidance of the elves, that the greatest empire of Man was forged. For Lyserlieall, known as the Dragonstag and founder of the Lyserian Empire, was one of the first men of the age to greet the elves and be welcomed into Landwöellen. At the age of 13 he came under the tutelage of Lwalandiar, the greatest of the Elven sages, who, foreseeing the Dragonstag’s future as a leader of man, taught him the history of the ages, and the dangers of false-leadership. The Dragonstag went on to create “Highwater Home,” the City of Uth-Kar, and from there, tame and civilize the lands stretching from the Great Waste of the South to the Barrier Mountains to the North, and all the West to the ending of land and the great expanse of the Sea.

Early Spring, 7,5000.

Hildy Holderheck and Baer joined forces to determine the cause of the kobold infestation of the Frostwood. They came upon the pair Arachne and Serillian Mumblebrook on the West Tongue Fork Road, so-named because it follows the western fork of the Snake Tongue river. The meeting was fortuituous, as Arachne and Serillian were in the midst of a kobold ambush. Together, they dispatched the kobolds and continued toward Winterhaven, with different goals. Arachne traveled there as a map-maker, having convinced the sage Theress Herrenhowl that she was indeed the right person for the job. She hired Serillian on as a guide. However, Herrenhowl had an ulterior motive, as he was aware that the Shadowfell Keep , north of Winterhaven, was hiding a piece of the fractured artifact, the demonsword Arkelyrion, the Sword of Orcus. The worshippers of Orcus are scattered, having been weakened by his defeat, material death, and exile brought upon by an alliance between Bahamut and Tiamat five hundred years ago. With Arkelyrion reformed, they would be able to shepherd his re-ascendence and re-entry into Kaelleria — the known world.